As a former assistant director to Japanese cinema icon Yasujiro Ozu, Yoji Yamada has sometimes followed and sometimes strayed from his mentor’s footsteps. His long-running Tora-san series of romantic dramedies was an extended riff on the type of populist cinema that Ozu shunned, but Yamada is also the only director to attempt remaking the postwar classic Tokyo Story.
His 2013 homage Tokyo Family introduced the characters and ensemble cast that form the basis for the contentious Hirata clan featured in the subsequent What A Wonderful Family! series. As this sequel to the 2016 original opens, the emotional rift that almost...
His 2013 homage Tokyo Family introduced the characters and ensemble cast that form the basis for the contentious Hirata clan featured in the subsequent What A Wonderful Family! series. As this sequel to the 2016 original opens, the emotional rift that almost...
- 12/12/2017
- by Justin Lowe
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Stars: Saya Minami, Kenji Shimada, Kaori Kawabuchi, Kei Miura, Nozomi de Lencquesaing, Yoji Yamada, Sawa Masaki, Yasunari Kondo, Ten Miyazawa, Yûki Kuroda, Dylan Davies Tanaka, Dylan Heath, Ayumu Kawashima, Yumiko Dunk | Written by Bill Clare, Addison Heath, Dylan Heath, Jasmine Jakupi | Directed by Addison Heath, Jasmine Jakupi
I’ll be honest, I’m a Huge fan of writer/director Addison Heath’s work – from his script for Chocolate Strawberry Vanilla; to his fantastic directorial debut Under a Kaleidoscope (which I reviewed back in 2014 when it screened at that years MonsterFest); to his most recent film, the superb genre-bending Monda Yakuza; I have enjoyed each and ever one of his movies to no end. So how excited am I for with his latest opus, The Viper’s Hex, another film inspired by Far East cinema? Let’s just say a Lot!
Whilst his previous film, Mondo Yakuza, was clearly inspired by...
I’ll be honest, I’m a Huge fan of writer/director Addison Heath’s work – from his script for Chocolate Strawberry Vanilla; to his fantastic directorial debut Under a Kaleidoscope (which I reviewed back in 2014 when it screened at that years MonsterFest); to his most recent film, the superb genre-bending Monda Yakuza; I have enjoyed each and ever one of his movies to no end. So how excited am I for with his latest opus, The Viper’s Hex, another film inspired by Far East cinema? Let’s just say a Lot!
Whilst his previous film, Mondo Yakuza, was clearly inspired by...
- 11/27/2017
- by Phil Wheat
- Nerdly
Ready for some full- on Japanese sentimentality? Superlative tough guy Ken Takakura takes us deep into heartbreak territory in search of a happy ending. Yoji Yamada’s Hokkaido road epic throws together a trio of ‘drifters of the heart’ to see if they can solve each other’s romantic dilemmas.
The Yellow Handkerchief
Blu-ray
Twilight Time
1978 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / Street Date November 14, 2017 / Shiawase no kiiroi hankachi / Available from the Twilight Time Movies Store / 24.95
Starring: Ken Takakura, Chieko Baisho, Kaori Momoi, Tetsuya Takeda, Hisao Dazai, Makoto Akatsuka, Mari Okamato.
Cinematography: Tetsuo Takaha
Film Editor: Iwao Ishii
Original Music: Masaru Sato
Written by Yoji Yamada, Yoshitaka Asama
Produced by Toru Najima
Directed by Yoji Yamada
Americans can experience difficulty navigating the sometimes- confusing sphere of Japanese humor. Cartoons, children’s films, action movies often seem crude or cruel, but can also be unexpectedly delicate. And some cultural barriers are still there — nobody...
The Yellow Handkerchief
Blu-ray
Twilight Time
1978 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / Street Date November 14, 2017 / Shiawase no kiiroi hankachi / Available from the Twilight Time Movies Store / 24.95
Starring: Ken Takakura, Chieko Baisho, Kaori Momoi, Tetsuya Takeda, Hisao Dazai, Makoto Akatsuka, Mari Okamato.
Cinematography: Tetsuo Takaha
Film Editor: Iwao Ishii
Original Music: Masaru Sato
Written by Yoji Yamada, Yoshitaka Asama
Produced by Toru Najima
Directed by Yoji Yamada
Americans can experience difficulty navigating the sometimes- confusing sphere of Japanese humor. Cartoons, children’s films, action movies often seem crude or cruel, but can also be unexpectedly delicate. And some cultural barriers are still there — nobody...
- 11/25/2017
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Black Forest Films, the Auusie production company behind the awesome Mondo Yakuza and the forthcoming The Viper’s Hex, have announced their next film - The Shinjuku Five.
Set to film in Japan and Australia, The Shinjuku Five is once again written and co-directed, alongside Jasmine Jakupi, by Addison Heath (Chocolate Strawberry Vanilla, Under a Kaleidoscope) and stars Yoji Yamada, Saya Minami, Cris Cochrane, Tim Jason Wicks and Mondo Yakuza star Kenji Shimada. The soundtrack comes from Queensland based The Screaming Meanies, who have provided scores for The Perfect Nonsense, Mondo Yakuza and Stuart Simpson’s kung-fu short Dragon Force.
Check out the poster for The Shinjuku Five below:...
Set to film in Japan and Australia, The Shinjuku Five is once again written and co-directed, alongside Jasmine Jakupi, by Addison Heath (Chocolate Strawberry Vanilla, Under a Kaleidoscope) and stars Yoji Yamada, Saya Minami, Cris Cochrane, Tim Jason Wicks and Mondo Yakuza star Kenji Shimada. The soundtrack comes from Queensland based The Screaming Meanies, who have provided scores for The Perfect Nonsense, Mondo Yakuza and Stuart Simpson’s kung-fu short Dragon Force.
Check out the poster for The Shinjuku Five below:...
- 7/21/2017
- by Phil Wheat
- Nerdly
One of the very few Japanese actors to make a successful transition to Hollywood, Hiroyuki Sanada has been in the movie business for more than half a century. Sanada, 56, came to the attention of international audiences for his role as a warrior and devoted family man in Yoji Yamada’s Oscar-nominated The Twilight Samurai (2002), before appearing alongside Tom Cruise and Ken Watanabe in The Last Samurai the following year.
Despite his early martial arts training and graduating from Sonny Chiba’s Japan Action Club, his range is far wider than portrayals of Japan’s legendary swordsmen. He has appeared in films as...
Despite his early martial arts training and graduating from Sonny Chiba’s Japan Action Club, his range is far wider than portrayals of Japan’s legendary swordsmen. He has appeared in films as...
- 3/13/2017
- by Gavin J. Blair
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Veteran Japanese film executive to head up festival, which will undergo several changes in 2017.
The Tokyo Film Festival has tapped up Takeo Hisamatsu (pictured) to head up the 30th edition of the festival later this year.
Hisamatsu, who was formerly an executive managing director at Shochiku Co. and deputy general manager of Warner Bros. Pictures Japan, will replace outgoing Director General Yasushi Shiina, who held the top post at the Tokyo festival for four years.
With a nearly 40 year track record in the film business, Hisamatsu is currently the president of his own company My Way Movies.
In recent years, Hisamatsu has played a role in such productions as the 2013 Japanese remake of the Clint Eastwood western Unforgiven, Miwa Nishikawa’s 2009 comedy-drama Dear Doctor and Bushi No Ichibun, Yoji Yamada’s 2006 semi-prequel to Zatoichi.
“It is my hope that through this festival, we can continue to present films from around the world in all their diversity and richness...
The Tokyo Film Festival has tapped up Takeo Hisamatsu (pictured) to head up the 30th edition of the festival later this year.
Hisamatsu, who was formerly an executive managing director at Shochiku Co. and deputy general manager of Warner Bros. Pictures Japan, will replace outgoing Director General Yasushi Shiina, who held the top post at the Tokyo festival for four years.
With a nearly 40 year track record in the film business, Hisamatsu is currently the president of his own company My Way Movies.
In recent years, Hisamatsu has played a role in such productions as the 2013 Japanese remake of the Clint Eastwood western Unforgiven, Miwa Nishikawa’s 2009 comedy-drama Dear Doctor and Bushi No Ichibun, Yoji Yamada’s 2006 semi-prequel to Zatoichi.
“It is my hope that through this festival, we can continue to present films from around the world in all their diversity and richness...
- 3/10/2017
- ScreenDaily
The Journey To The West director is one of China’s most bankable filmmakers.
This year’s Asian Film Awards (Afa) will present the Lifetime Achievement Award to iconic Hong Kong director, producer and screenwriter Tsui Hark.
Tsui most recently directed Journey To The West: The Demons Strike Back, produced by fellow Hong Kong filmmaker Stephen Chow, which was one of the top-grossing releases in mainland China over the Chinese New Year holiday period. His other recent China blockbusters include Young Detective Dee: Rise Of The Sea Dragon (2013) and The Taking Of Tiger Mountain (2014).
Starting with his 2011 hit Flying Swords Of Dragon Gate, Tsui has made all his films as a director in 3D and has become one of the region’s most effective filmmakers in the use of 3D technology.
Although currently one of China’s most bankable filmmakers, Tsui’s career stretches back some 40 years. In 1984, he founded Film Workshop with Nansun Shi, through which he...
This year’s Asian Film Awards (Afa) will present the Lifetime Achievement Award to iconic Hong Kong director, producer and screenwriter Tsui Hark.
Tsui most recently directed Journey To The West: The Demons Strike Back, produced by fellow Hong Kong filmmaker Stephen Chow, which was one of the top-grossing releases in mainland China over the Chinese New Year holiday period. His other recent China blockbusters include Young Detective Dee: Rise Of The Sea Dragon (2013) and The Taking Of Tiger Mountain (2014).
Starting with his 2011 hit Flying Swords Of Dragon Gate, Tsui has made all his films as a director in 3D and has become one of the region’s most effective filmmakers in the use of 3D technology.
Although currently one of China’s most bankable filmmakers, Tsui’s career stretches back some 40 years. In 1984, he founded Film Workshop with Nansun Shi, through which he...
- 2/28/2017
- by lizshackleton@gmail.com (Liz Shackleton)
- ScreenDaily
Yoji Yamada's hit Japanese comedy What a Wonderful Family! (Kazoku wa Tsuraiyo) is getting a Chinese remake.
Bill Kong's Edko and Shanghai Yiyantang Entertainment will produce the Chinese version of the film, with Huang Lei directing and his wife, Sun Li, set to star, according to Chinese media reports.
What a Wonderful Family! was released by Shochiku in Japan in March this year and took around $13 million at the local box office.
The dramedy follows a couple, married for 50 years. When the husband asks his wife what she wants for her upcoming birthday, she replies: "a divorce," sending...
Bill Kong's Edko and Shanghai Yiyantang Entertainment will produce the Chinese version of the film, with Huang Lei directing and his wife, Sun Li, set to star, according to Chinese media reports.
What a Wonderful Family! was released by Shochiku in Japan in March this year and took around $13 million at the local box office.
The dramedy follows a couple, married for 50 years. When the husband asks his wife what she wants for her upcoming birthday, she replies: "a divorce," sending...
- 12/9/2016
- by Gavin J. Blair
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Still cranking out features well into his 80s, renowned Japanese director Yoji Yamada has a few moves left yet, releasing both What a Wonderful Family! and period drama Nagasaki: Memories of My Son (Japan’s 2016 foreign-language Oscar submission) back-to-back over the past year. His latest is a follow-up to 2013’s Tokyo Family, itself a modern-day riff on Yasujiro Ozu’s classic postwar drama Tokyo Story.
Unlike the more sedate tone of its predecessor, Wonderful Family! heralds a shift to lighter fare, representing Yamada’s first real comedy in 20 years, following the conclusion of his near-legendary Tora-san series after more than 40...
Unlike the more sedate tone of its predecessor, Wonderful Family! heralds a shift to lighter fare, representing Yamada’s first real comedy in 20 years, following the conclusion of his near-legendary Tora-san series after more than 40...
- 12/2/2016
- by Justin Lowe
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Eighty-five countries have submitted films for consideration in the Foreign Language Film category for the 89th Academy Awards. Yemen is a first-time entrant.
The 2016 submissions are:
Albania, “Chromium,” Bujar Alimani, director;
Algeria, “The Well,” Lotfi Bouchouchi, director;
Argentina, “The Distinguished Citizen,” Mariano Cohn, Gastón Duprat, directors;
Australia, “Tanna,” Bentley Dean, Martin Butler, directors;
Austria, “Stefan Zweig: Farewell to Europe,” Maria Schrader, director;
Bangladesh, “link=tt5510934 auto]The Unnamed[/link],” Tauquir Ahmed, director;
Belgium, “The Ardennes,” Robin Pront, director;
Bolivia, “Sealed Cargo,” Julia Vargas Weise, director;
Bosnia and Herzegovina, “Death in Sarajevo,” Danis Tanovic, director;
Brazil, “Little Secret,” David Schurmann, director;
Bulgaria, “Losers,” Ivaylo Hristov, director;
Cambodia, “Before the Fall,” Ian White, director;
Canada, “It’s Only the End of the World,” Xavier Dolan, director;
Chile, “Neruda,” Pablo Larraín, director;
China, “Xuan Zang,” Huo Jianqi, director;
Colombia, “Alias Maria,” José Luis Rugeles, director;
Costa Rica, “About Us,” Hernán Jiménez, director;
Croatia, “On the Other Side,...
The 2016 submissions are:
Albania, “Chromium,” Bujar Alimani, director;
Algeria, “The Well,” Lotfi Bouchouchi, director;
Argentina, “The Distinguished Citizen,” Mariano Cohn, Gastón Duprat, directors;
Australia, “Tanna,” Bentley Dean, Martin Butler, directors;
Austria, “Stefan Zweig: Farewell to Europe,” Maria Schrader, director;
Bangladesh, “link=tt5510934 auto]The Unnamed[/link],” Tauquir Ahmed, director;
Belgium, “The Ardennes,” Robin Pront, director;
Bolivia, “Sealed Cargo,” Julia Vargas Weise, director;
Bosnia and Herzegovina, “Death in Sarajevo,” Danis Tanovic, director;
Brazil, “Little Secret,” David Schurmann, director;
Bulgaria, “Losers,” Ivaylo Hristov, director;
Cambodia, “Before the Fall,” Ian White, director;
Canada, “It’s Only the End of the World,” Xavier Dolan, director;
Chile, “Neruda,” Pablo Larraín, director;
China, “Xuan Zang,” Huo Jianqi, director;
Colombia, “Alias Maria,” José Luis Rugeles, director;
Costa Rica, “About Us,” Hernán Jiménez, director;
Croatia, “On the Other Side,...
- 10/12/2016
- by Melissa Thompson
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Eighty-five countries have submitted a film for consideration in the 60th anniversary year of the foreign language film category.
The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Science said on Tuesday that this season also marks the first time Yemen has submitted a film, Khadija Al-Salami’s I Am Nojoom, Age 10 And Divorced.
The 89th Oscars will take place on February 26, 2017, at the Dolby Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center in Hollywood. László Nemes’ Hungarian entry Son Of Saul won the award last February.
Foreign-language Academy Award Submissions
(Country, Title, director)
Albania, Chromium, dir Bujar Alimani;
Algeria, The Well, Lotfi Bouchouchi;
Argentina, The Distinguished Citizen, Mariano Cohn, Gastón Duprat;
Australia, Tanna, Bentley Dean, Martin Butler;
Austria, Stefan Zweig: Farewell To Europe, Maria Schrader;
Bangladesh, The Unnamed, Tauquir Ahmed;
Belgium, The Ardennes, Robin Pront;
Bolivia, Sealed Cargo, Julia Vargas Weise;
Bosnia and Herzegovina, Death In Sarajevo, Danis Tanovic;
Brazil, Little Secret, David Schurmann.
Bulgaria, Losers, [link...
The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Science said on Tuesday that this season also marks the first time Yemen has submitted a film, Khadija Al-Salami’s I Am Nojoom, Age 10 And Divorced.
The 89th Oscars will take place on February 26, 2017, at the Dolby Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center in Hollywood. László Nemes’ Hungarian entry Son Of Saul won the award last February.
Foreign-language Academy Award Submissions
(Country, Title, director)
Albania, Chromium, dir Bujar Alimani;
Algeria, The Well, Lotfi Bouchouchi;
Argentina, The Distinguished Citizen, Mariano Cohn, Gastón Duprat;
Australia, Tanna, Bentley Dean, Martin Butler;
Austria, Stefan Zweig: Farewell To Europe, Maria Schrader;
Bangladesh, The Unnamed, Tauquir Ahmed;
Belgium, The Ardennes, Robin Pront;
Bolivia, Sealed Cargo, Julia Vargas Weise;
Bosnia and Herzegovina, Death In Sarajevo, Danis Tanovic;
Brazil, Little Secret, David Schurmann.
Bulgaria, Losers, [link...
- 10/11/2016
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
Lee joined Hou Hsiao-hsien and Hirokazu Kore-eda at a special talk event in Busan.
Korean director Lee Chang-dong gave a moving speech in support of former Busan International Film Festival (Biff) director Lee Yong-kwan at the Special Talk: Three Masters event at the Busan International Film Festival (Oct 6-15) on Monday (Oct 10).
The event brought together three masters of Asian cinema – Lee, Taiwan’s Hou Hsiao-hsien and Japan’s Hirokazu Kore-eda [pictured] – to discuss the need for solidarity among Asian film-makers and the future direction of the Asian film industry. Inevitably, given Biff’s current political problems, the three directors also talked about the festival’s future.
“Busan city officials and festival officials have failed to listen to our proposals – so I’d like to address cineastes and Biff organisers,” Lee said towards the end of the event. “When you go through hardships, your pride is hurt, and I believe the festival organisers and committee members...
Korean director Lee Chang-dong gave a moving speech in support of former Busan International Film Festival (Biff) director Lee Yong-kwan at the Special Talk: Three Masters event at the Busan International Film Festival (Oct 6-15) on Monday (Oct 10).
The event brought together three masters of Asian cinema – Lee, Taiwan’s Hou Hsiao-hsien and Japan’s Hirokazu Kore-eda [pictured] – to discuss the need for solidarity among Asian film-makers and the future direction of the Asian film industry. Inevitably, given Biff’s current political problems, the three directors also talked about the festival’s future.
“Busan city officials and festival officials have failed to listen to our proposals – so I’d like to address cineastes and Biff organisers,” Lee said towards the end of the event. “When you go through hardships, your pride is hurt, and I believe the festival organisers and committee members...
- 10/10/2016
- by lizshackleton@gmail.com (Liz Shackleton)
- ScreenDaily
Yoji Yamada’s What a Wonderful Family screening on Fantasia International Film FestivalSTORY73%DIRECTION77%ACTING80%VISUALS65%POSITIVESGreat castMeaningful story with social implicationsElaborate directionNEGATIVESThe slow pace and the lack of action may not apply to the mainstream audience2016-08-0174%Overall ScoreReader Rating: (0 Votes)0%
Yoji Yamada has turned towards family films during the latest years, and this time presents a social comedy about a family of three generations living under the same roof.
The Hirata’s, seemingly, are a functional family, despite the fact that the grandparents, their eldest son, Konosuke with his wife, Fumie and their two children, and the younger son, Shota, all live under the same roof, along with their dog, Toto. The only family member away from the house is the daughter, Shigeko, who lives with her husband, Taizo, in an apartment of their own. The only one who seems to be problematic is the grandfather, Shuzo,...
Yoji Yamada has turned towards family films during the latest years, and this time presents a social comedy about a family of three generations living under the same roof.
The Hirata’s, seemingly, are a functional family, despite the fact that the grandparents, their eldest son, Konosuke with his wife, Fumie and their two children, and the younger son, Shota, all live under the same roof, along with their dog, Toto. The only family member away from the house is the daughter, Shigeko, who lives with her husband, Taizo, in an apartment of their own. The only one who seems to be problematic is the grandfather, Shuzo,...
- 8/1/2016
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
North America’s largest festival of new Japanese cinema, and pound-for-pound one of the most consistently rewarding film festivals on the planet, Japan Cuts grows more vital with every passing year. In part, that’s because Manhattan’s Japan Society has done a stellar job of cultivating a local audience, pouring resources into the annual celebration, and programming their slates in a way that appeals equally to cinephiles, otaku, and people who just want to see a movie about a guy who falls in love with his goldfish.
Unfortunately, Japan Cuts also grows more vital with every passing year because the domestic market for foreign film is withering away at a terrible rate, lowering the odds that you’ll ever get a second chance at seeing any of these exhilarating dispatches from the Land of the Rising Sun on the big screen.
This year’s fest, which runs from July...
Unfortunately, Japan Cuts also grows more vital with every passing year because the domestic market for foreign film is withering away at a terrible rate, lowering the odds that you’ll ever get a second chance at seeing any of these exhilarating dispatches from the Land of the Rising Sun on the big screen.
This year’s fest, which runs from July...
- 7/14/2016
- by David Ehrlich
- Indiewire
Six newly-restored films from Germany, Japan, Taiwan and the Us.
The Berlinale Classics strand at the 66th Berlin International Film Festival (Feb 11-21) is to include premieres of six films: two German and four international productions, five of them world premieres.
Us film The Road Back directed by James Whale in 1937, references a slice of German history. It is based on the eponymous Erich Maria Remarque novel about four German infantrymen who face a difficult road back to civilian life.
In 1939, after protests from Germany, Universal Studios re-edited the film without consulting the director. The festival is showing a reconstruction of Whale’s original 1937 theatrical release version, preserved by the Library of Congress in collaboration with NBCUniversal and Martin Scorsese’s The Film Foundation. David Stenn and the UCLA Film & Television Archive provided skills and film footage.
Heiner Carow’s semi-autobiographical film The Russians are Coming (Die Russen kommen, Gdr, 1968) is set in...
The Berlinale Classics strand at the 66th Berlin International Film Festival (Feb 11-21) is to include premieres of six films: two German and four international productions, five of them world premieres.
Us film The Road Back directed by James Whale in 1937, references a slice of German history. It is based on the eponymous Erich Maria Remarque novel about four German infantrymen who face a difficult road back to civilian life.
In 1939, after protests from Germany, Universal Studios re-edited the film without consulting the director. The festival is showing a reconstruction of Whale’s original 1937 theatrical release version, preserved by the Library of Congress in collaboration with NBCUniversal and Martin Scorsese’s The Film Foundation. David Stenn and the UCLA Film & Television Archive provided skills and film footage.
Heiner Carow’s semi-autobiographical film The Russians are Coming (Die Russen kommen, Gdr, 1968) is set in...
- 1/14/2016
- by michael.rosser@screendaily.com (Michael Rosser)
- ScreenDaily
The 28th edition of the Tokyo International Film Festival took place from the 22th until the 31th of October in the great city of Tokyo. This ten day event is the only Japanese film festival accredited by the International Federation of Film Producers Associations (Fiapf). It started in 1985 and since then it became one of the most important festival in the world. The festival offers the audience a great chance to see the very best film from around the world and bring them the best national productions.
Competition Section
Tokyo Grand Prix
Nise – O Coração da Loucura (Nise – The Heart of Madness) by Roberto Berliner – Brazil | 2015 – 109 min.
Special Jury Prize
Nous Trois ou Rien (All Three of Us) by Kheiron – France | 2015 – 102 min.
Award for Best Director
Mustafa Kara for his film Kalandar Soğuğu (Cold of Kalandar) Turkey, Hungary | 2015 – 139 min.
Award for Best Actress
Gloria Pires for the film Nise – O...
Competition Section
Tokyo Grand Prix
Nise – O Coração da Loucura (Nise – The Heart of Madness) by Roberto Berliner – Brazil | 2015 – 109 min.
Special Jury Prize
Nous Trois ou Rien (All Three of Us) by Kheiron – France | 2015 – 102 min.
Award for Best Director
Mustafa Kara for his film Kalandar Soğuğu (Cold of Kalandar) Turkey, Hungary | 2015 – 139 min.
Award for Best Actress
Gloria Pires for the film Nise – O...
- 11/4/2015
- by Sebastian Nadilo
- AsianMoviePulse
Other winners include All Three of Us, Cold of Kalandar, Land Of Mine, God Willing and Family Film.
Roberto Berliner’s Nise - The Heart of Madness, based on the true story of a Brazilian psychiatrist, took the top prize at the 28th Tokyo International Film Festival on Saturday.
The Brazilian film’s Gloria Pires also won the Best Actress award for her performance in the title role as Nise da Silveira, a doctor assigned to a Rio de Janeiro mental hospital in the 1940s.
“We all felt that it was a very believable world full of sadness, of humour and of triumph,” competition jury president Bryan Singer said in presenting the Tokyo Grand Prix, which comes with a cash prize of $50,000.
Berliner described the film as a “cruel job” in that it took 13 years out of his life to make but he never lost his determination to bring Nise da Silveira’s story to the screen...
Roberto Berliner’s Nise - The Heart of Madness, based on the true story of a Brazilian psychiatrist, took the top prize at the 28th Tokyo International Film Festival on Saturday.
The Brazilian film’s Gloria Pires also won the Best Actress award for her performance in the title role as Nise da Silveira, a doctor assigned to a Rio de Janeiro mental hospital in the 1940s.
“We all felt that it was a very believable world full of sadness, of humour and of triumph,” competition jury president Bryan Singer said in presenting the Tokyo Grand Prix, which comes with a cash prize of $50,000.
Berliner described the film as a “cruel job” in that it took 13 years out of his life to make but he never lost his determination to bring Nise da Silveira’s story to the screen...
- 11/1/2015
- ScreenDaily
An android actress, giant anime robots and the legacy of Akira Kurosawa were among the offerings at this year’s Tokyo International Film Festival (Tiff), which as always presented an interesting mix of old and new.
Android Geminoid-f – created by robotics expert Hiroshi Ishiguro – is an eerily convincing lead actress in Koji Fukada’s Sayonara, which received its world premiere in Tiff’s competition section.
Both Geminoid-f and Japanese-speaking actress Bryerly Long are reprising their roles from the short stage-play from which the film is adapted.
Although set in a near-future Japan contaminated by radiation, the film is more of a riff on mortality and the fear of death than a comment on the Fukushima nuclear disaster.
More startling than the story was the range of emotions that Geminoid-f was able to convey. “Sometimes robots can express more than humans,” said Ishiguro at a post-screening event.
Gundam focus
The giant robots came courtesy of a focus on iconic...
Android Geminoid-f – created by robotics expert Hiroshi Ishiguro – is an eerily convincing lead actress in Koji Fukada’s Sayonara, which received its world premiere in Tiff’s competition section.
Both Geminoid-f and Japanese-speaking actress Bryerly Long are reprising their roles from the short stage-play from which the film is adapted.
Although set in a near-future Japan contaminated by radiation, the film is more of a riff on mortality and the fear of death than a comment on the Fukushima nuclear disaster.
More startling than the story was the range of emotions that Geminoid-f was able to convey. “Sometimes robots can express more than humans,” said Ishiguro at a post-screening event.
Gundam focus
The giant robots came courtesy of a focus on iconic...
- 10/27/2015
- by lizshackleton@gmail.com (Liz Shackleton)
- ScreenDaily
An android actress, giant anime robots and the legacy of Akira Kurosawa were among the offerings at this year’s Tokyo International Film Festival (Tiff), which as always presented an interesting mix of old and new.
Android Geminoid-f – created by robotics expert Hiroshi Ishiguro – is an eerily convincing lead actress in Koji Fukada’s Sayonara, which received its world premiere in Tiff’s competition section. Both Geminoid-f and Japanese-speaking actress Bryerly Long are reprising their roles from the short stage-play that the film is adapted from.
Although set in a near-future Japan contaminated by radiation, the film is more of a riff on mortality and the fear of death than a comment on the Fukushima nuclear disaster. More startling than the story was the range of emotions that Geminoid-f was able to convey. “Sometimes robots can express more than humans,” said Ishiguro at a post-screening event.
The giant robots came courtesy of a focus on iconic Japanese...
Android Geminoid-f – created by robotics expert Hiroshi Ishiguro – is an eerily convincing lead actress in Koji Fukada’s Sayonara, which received its world premiere in Tiff’s competition section. Both Geminoid-f and Japanese-speaking actress Bryerly Long are reprising their roles from the short stage-play that the film is adapted from.
Although set in a near-future Japan contaminated by radiation, the film is more of a riff on mortality and the fear of death than a comment on the Fukushima nuclear disaster. More startling than the story was the range of emotions that Geminoid-f was able to convey. “Sometimes robots can express more than humans,” said Ishiguro at a post-screening event.
The giant robots came courtesy of a focus on iconic Japanese...
- 10/27/2015
- by lizshackleton@gmail.com (Liz Shackleton)
- ScreenDaily
The action director reveals details of new feature Manhunt, a long-awaited remake of The Killer and his thoughts on retirement.
John Woo spent much of the ‘90s and early 2000s directing Us hits like Broken Arrow, Face/Off and Mission: Impossible II, before going back to Chinese films with Red Cliff in 2008.
So would he ever consider a return to Hollywood?
“I have never left. I still enjoy working with Hollywood. I still have a couple of projects developing in Hollywood,” the legendary Hong Kong action director told ScreenDaily at the Tokyo International Film Festival (Oct 22-31).
“So after Manhunt, I probably will go back to Hollywood to make another action thriller. I’m going to make The Killer in an American version.”
There has long been talk of an English-language remake of The Killer, the 1989 Hong Kong assassin flick that raised Woo’s profile globally as a director of hard-boiled action films and helped launch his move...
John Woo spent much of the ‘90s and early 2000s directing Us hits like Broken Arrow, Face/Off and Mission: Impossible II, before going back to Chinese films with Red Cliff in 2008.
So would he ever consider a return to Hollywood?
“I have never left. I still enjoy working with Hollywood. I still have a couple of projects developing in Hollywood,” the legendary Hong Kong action director told ScreenDaily at the Tokyo International Film Festival (Oct 22-31).
“So after Manhunt, I probably will go back to Hollywood to make another action thriller. I’m going to make The Killer in an American version.”
There has long been talk of an English-language remake of The Killer, the 1989 Hong Kong assassin flick that raised Woo’s profile globally as a director of hard-boiled action films and helped launch his move...
- 10/26/2015
- ScreenDaily
Forget English soap operas about upstairs and downstairs upheavals, Yoji Yamada's chronicle of a life in the little Tokyo house with the little red roof is an emotional grabber. It's the war years of patriotic acquiescence and home-front selfishness -- and a secret, forbidden romance. The Little House (Chiisai ouchi) Twilight Time Savant Blu-ray Review Limited Edition 2014 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 136 min. / Chiisai ouchi / Ship Date August 11, 2015 / available through Twilight Time Movies / 29.95 Starring Takaku Matsu, Haru Kuroki, Takataro Kataoka, Hidetaka Yoshioka, Satoshi Tsumabuki, Chieko Baisho Cinematography Masashi Chikamori Art Direction Mitsuo Degawa, Daisuke Sue Film Editor Iwao Ishii Original Music Joe Hisashi Written by Yoji Yamada, Emiko Hiramatsu, Kyoko Nakajima Produced by Tadashi Ohsumi Directed by Yoji Yamada
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
When Twilight Time brings out a disc not licensed from a major studio, I pay special attention. Last year they released a good Yoji Yamada film called The Twilight Samurai,...
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
When Twilight Time brings out a disc not licensed from a major studio, I pay special attention. Last year they released a good Yoji Yamada film called The Twilight Samurai,...
- 9/8/2015
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
We're rounding up news on some of the more projects in the works announced during the Cannes Film Festival: Lucrecia Martel's Zama, Olivier Assayas’s Personal Shopper with Kristen Stewart, Abel Ferrara's Siberia with Willem Dafoe, Carlos Reygadas's "cowboy story," Todd Haynes's Wonderstruck, Andrew Haigh's Lean on Pete, Bertrand Bonello's Paris Is Happening and Stéphane Brizé's Une Vie. Plus: Nicolas Cage is re-teaming with Paul Schrader and Mike Figgis and more on forthcoming films from Marjane Satrapi, Wim Wenders, Paolo Sorrentino, Pablo Larraín, Nicole Holofcener, Mike Mills, Per Fly, Shinji Aoyama, Taika Waititi, Jared Hess, Peter Ho-sun Chan, Yoji Yamada and more. » - David Hudson...
- 5/26/2015
- Fandor: Keyframe
We're rounding up news on some of the more projects in the works announced during the Cannes Film Festival: Lucrecia Martel's Zama, Olivier Assayas’s Personal Shopper with Kristen Stewart, Abel Ferrara's Siberia with Willem Dafoe, Carlos Reygadas's "cowboy story," Todd Haynes's Wonderstruck, Andrew Haigh's Lean on Pete, Bertrand Bonello's Paris Is Happening and Stéphane Brizé's Une Vie. Plus: Nicolas Cage is re-teaming with Paul Schrader and Mike Figgis and more on forthcoming films from Marjane Satrapi, Wim Wenders, Paolo Sorrentino, Pablo Larraín, Nicole Holofcener, Mike Mills, Per Fly, Shinji Aoyama, Taika Waititi, Jared Hess, Peter Ho-sun Chan, Yoji Yamada and more. » - David Hudson...
- 5/26/2015
- Keyframe
Exclusive: Japanese studio Shochiku is launching sales on two new projects from leading director Yoji Yamada – a drama based on a Hisashi Inoue story and the director’s first comedy since the end of the Tora-san series in 1995.
The drama, Haha To Kuraseba (literal translation: Living With My Mother) is currently in production with Sayuri Yoshinaga (Kabei: Our Mother) and Kazunari Ninomiya (Letters From Iwo Jima) heading the cast.
The story follows a midwife in Nagasaki who is stunned when she is visited by her son who she thought had died three years earlier when an atomic bomb fell on the city. Japanese release is tentatively scheduled for Winter 2015.
Currently in post-production, the comedy Kazoku Wa Tsuraiyo! stars most of the cast from Yamada’s Tokyo Family, including Isao Hashizume, Kazuko Yoshiyuki, Masahiko Nishimura and Yui Natsukawa.
The story follows an older couple who decide to divorce after 50 years of marriage, and the efforts...
The drama, Haha To Kuraseba (literal translation: Living With My Mother) is currently in production with Sayuri Yoshinaga (Kabei: Our Mother) and Kazunari Ninomiya (Letters From Iwo Jima) heading the cast.
The story follows a midwife in Nagasaki who is stunned when she is visited by her son who she thought had died three years earlier when an atomic bomb fell on the city. Japanese release is tentatively scheduled for Winter 2015.
Currently in post-production, the comedy Kazoku Wa Tsuraiyo! stars most of the cast from Yamada’s Tokyo Family, including Isao Hashizume, Kazuko Yoshiyuki, Masahiko Nishimura and Yui Natsukawa.
The story follows an older couple who decide to divorce after 50 years of marriage, and the efforts...
- 5/18/2015
- by lizshackleton@gmail.com (Liz Shackleton)
- ScreenDaily
Korean director to receive Lifetime Achievement Award at this year’s edition on March 25.
Korean director Im Kwon-taek will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award at this year’s edition of the Asian Film Awards in Macau on March 25.
Im has directed more than a hundred films across different genres, starting in the 1950s with mainstream projects, and veering into more realistic cinema from his 1973 drama Weeds.
His 1986 Surrogate Mother (1986) won best actress for Kang Soo-yeoun at the Venice film festival, marking Korea’s first ever win in Venice. Chunhyang (2000) was the first Korean film to compete in Cannes and two years later Im’s Chihwaseon (2002) won best director at the festival.
Im is still an active filmmaker today – his most recent film Revivre, about a middle-aged man tending to his dying wife and fantasising about a younger woman, premiered at Venice last year.
Previous Afa Lifetime Achievement Award winners include Taiwanese director Hou Hsiao-hsien, Hong Kong director...
Korean director Im Kwon-taek will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award at this year’s edition of the Asian Film Awards in Macau on March 25.
Im has directed more than a hundred films across different genres, starting in the 1950s with mainstream projects, and veering into more realistic cinema from his 1973 drama Weeds.
His 1986 Surrogate Mother (1986) won best actress for Kang Soo-yeoun at the Venice film festival, marking Korea’s first ever win in Venice. Chunhyang (2000) was the first Korean film to compete in Cannes and two years later Im’s Chihwaseon (2002) won best director at the festival.
Im is still an active filmmaker today – his most recent film Revivre, about a middle-aged man tending to his dying wife and fantasising about a younger woman, premiered at Venice last year.
Previous Afa Lifetime Achievement Award winners include Taiwanese director Hou Hsiao-hsien, Hong Kong director...
- 3/18/2015
- by lizshackleton@gmail.com (Liz Shackleton)
- ScreenDaily
Blu-ray Release Date: Nov. 11, 2014
Price: Blu-ray $29.95
Studio: Twilight Time
Hiroyuki Sanada is The Twilight Samurai
The 2002 drama-romance The Twilight Samurai—that’s right, there’s not a whole lot of action in this one—was written and directed by veteran Japanese filmmaker Yoji Yamada.
Set in mid-19th Century Japan a few years before the Meiji Restoration, the movie follows the life of Seibei Iguchi (Hiroyuki Sanada), a low-ranking samurai widower employed as a bureaucrat. Poor, but not destitute, he still manages to lead a content and happy life with his daughters and senile mother. But through an unfortunate turn of events, the turbulent times conspire against him…
Nominated for an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film at the 76th Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, The Twilight Samurai fared better in its homeland, where it won an unprecedented 12 Japanese Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor,...
Price: Blu-ray $29.95
Studio: Twilight Time
Hiroyuki Sanada is The Twilight Samurai
The 2002 drama-romance The Twilight Samurai—that’s right, there’s not a whole lot of action in this one—was written and directed by veteran Japanese filmmaker Yoji Yamada.
Set in mid-19th Century Japan a few years before the Meiji Restoration, the movie follows the life of Seibei Iguchi (Hiroyuki Sanada), a low-ranking samurai widower employed as a bureaucrat. Poor, but not destitute, he still manages to lead a content and happy life with his daughters and senile mother. But through an unfortunate turn of events, the turbulent times conspire against him…
Nominated for an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film at the 76th Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, The Twilight Samurai fared better in its homeland, where it won an unprecedented 12 Japanese Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor,...
- 10/13/2014
- by Laurence
- Disc Dish
The Mumbai Film Festival (Oct 14-21), recently saved by public donations following a funding crunch, unveiled its line-up today including the India Gold Competition and International Competition for first features.
The festival also announced that Catherine Deneuve will receive a Lifetime Achievement Award, while master classes will be held by DoP Christopher Doyle and director Mahamat Saleh Haroun.
The International Competition includes Benjamin Naishtat’s History Of Fear, Sudabeh Mortezai’s Macondo and Chaitanya Tamhane’s Court, fresh from its Venice success. The India Gold competition includes Bikas Mishra’s Chauranga, Avinash Arun’s The Fort (Killa) and Ms Prakash Babu’s Fig Fruit And The Wasps (see full list below).
Serbian director Goran Paskaljevic will head the India Gold jury, while the Dimensions Mumbai short film competition jury comprises directors Gauri Shinde and Homi Adajania, actors Satish Kaushik and Huma Qureshi and critic Rajeev Masand.
Key films outside the competition sections include Xavier Dolan’s [link...
The festival also announced that Catherine Deneuve will receive a Lifetime Achievement Award, while master classes will be held by DoP Christopher Doyle and director Mahamat Saleh Haroun.
The International Competition includes Benjamin Naishtat’s History Of Fear, Sudabeh Mortezai’s Macondo and Chaitanya Tamhane’s Court, fresh from its Venice success. The India Gold competition includes Bikas Mishra’s Chauranga, Avinash Arun’s The Fort (Killa) and Ms Prakash Babu’s Fig Fruit And The Wasps (see full list below).
Serbian director Goran Paskaljevic will head the India Gold jury, while the Dimensions Mumbai short film competition jury comprises directors Gauri Shinde and Homi Adajania, actors Satish Kaushik and Huma Qureshi and critic Rajeev Masand.
Key films outside the competition sections include Xavier Dolan’s [link...
- 9/17/2014
- by lizshackleton@gmail.com (Liz Shackleton)
- ScreenDaily
The 16th edition of the Mumbai Film Festival announced its line-up in a press conference today.
Here is the complete list of films which will be screened at the festival:-
International Competition
Difret
Dir.: Zeresenay Berhane Mehari (Ethiopia / 2014 / Col / 99)
History of Fear (Historia del miedo)
Dir.: Benjamin Naishtat (Argentina-France-Germany-Qatar-Uruguay / 2014 / Col / 79)
With Others (Ba Digaran)
Dir.: Nasser Zamiri (Iran / 2014 / Col / 85)
The Tree (Drevo)
Dir.: Sonja Prosenc (Slovenia / 2014 / Col / 90)
Next to Her (At li layla)
Dir.: Asaf Korman (Israel / 2014 / Col / 90)
Schimbare
Dir.: Alex Sampayo (Spain / 2014 / Col / 87)
Fever
Dir.: Raphaël Neal (France / 2014 / Col / 81)
Court
Dir.: Chaitanya Tamhane (India (Marathi-Gujarati-English-Hindi) / 2014 / Col / 116)
Macondo
Dir.: Sudabeh Mortezai (Austria / 2014 / Col / 98)
India Gold Competition 2014
The Fort (Killa)
Dir.: Avinash Arun (India (Marathi) / 2014 / Col / 107)
Unto the Dusk
Dir.: Sajin Baabu (India (Malayalam) / 2014 / Col / 118)
Names Unknown (Perariyathavar)
Dir.: Dr. Biju (India (Malayalam) / 2014 / Col / 110)
Buddha In a Traffic Jam
Dir.
Here is the complete list of films which will be screened at the festival:-
International Competition
Difret
Dir.: Zeresenay Berhane Mehari (Ethiopia / 2014 / Col / 99)
History of Fear (Historia del miedo)
Dir.: Benjamin Naishtat (Argentina-France-Germany-Qatar-Uruguay / 2014 / Col / 79)
With Others (Ba Digaran)
Dir.: Nasser Zamiri (Iran / 2014 / Col / 85)
The Tree (Drevo)
Dir.: Sonja Prosenc (Slovenia / 2014 / Col / 90)
Next to Her (At li layla)
Dir.: Asaf Korman (Israel / 2014 / Col / 90)
Schimbare
Dir.: Alex Sampayo (Spain / 2014 / Col / 87)
Fever
Dir.: Raphaël Neal (France / 2014 / Col / 81)
Court
Dir.: Chaitanya Tamhane (India (Marathi-Gujarati-English-Hindi) / 2014 / Col / 116)
Macondo
Dir.: Sudabeh Mortezai (Austria / 2014 / Col / 98)
India Gold Competition 2014
The Fort (Killa)
Dir.: Avinash Arun (India (Marathi) / 2014 / Col / 107)
Unto the Dusk
Dir.: Sajin Baabu (India (Malayalam) / 2014 / Col / 118)
Names Unknown (Perariyathavar)
Dir.: Dr. Biju (India (Malayalam) / 2014 / Col / 110)
Buddha In a Traffic Jam
Dir.
- 9/17/2014
- by NewsDesk
- DearCinema.com
Benjamin Naishtat’s debut feature picked up the Grand Prize at the festival in South Korea.
The 15th Jeonju International Film Festival (Jiff) awarded Benjamin Naishtat’s feature debut History Of Fear the Grand Prize and $19,000 in the International Competition. The Argentina-France-Germany-Uruguay-Qatar co-production is a sociological thriller made up of episodes that take place in Buenos Aires.
The International Competition jury said: “History Of Fear fits to the quality of the 15th Jeonju International Film Festival, focusing on alternative films, in that it breaks the narrative and has rough and experimental style.”
Lois Patino’s Coast Of Death took the Best Picture Award sponsored by Woosuk University with $10,000 in the International Competition and the Special Jury Award sponsored by Jeonbuk Bank with $6,000 went to Hotel Nueva Isla by Irene Gutiérrez and Javier Labrador.
Lauded for “very strong and naturalistic acting and accomplished long take camera work,” Jang Woo-jin’s feature debut A Fresh Start won KW10m ($9,800) with...
The 15th Jeonju International Film Festival (Jiff) awarded Benjamin Naishtat’s feature debut History Of Fear the Grand Prize and $19,000 in the International Competition. The Argentina-France-Germany-Uruguay-Qatar co-production is a sociological thriller made up of episodes that take place in Buenos Aires.
The International Competition jury said: “History Of Fear fits to the quality of the 15th Jeonju International Film Festival, focusing on alternative films, in that it breaks the narrative and has rough and experimental style.”
Lois Patino’s Coast Of Death took the Best Picture Award sponsored by Woosuk University with $10,000 in the International Competition and the Special Jury Award sponsored by Jeonbuk Bank with $6,000 went to Hotel Nueva Isla by Irene Gutiérrez and Javier Labrador.
Lauded for “very strong and naturalistic acting and accomplished long take camera work,” Jang Woo-jin’s feature debut A Fresh Start won KW10m ($9,800) with...
- 5/7/2014
- by hjnoh2007@gmail.com (Jean Noh)
- ScreenDaily
The Hong Kong International Film Festival (Hkiff) will screen the world premiere of Adam Wong’s Icac Investigators 2014 - Better Tomorrow, which has Dante Lam on board as consultant director, on March 26.
The festival is collaborating for the first time with Hong Kong’s Independent Commission Against Corruption (Icac), which celebrates its 40th anniversary this year. Founded in 1974, the organisation helped clean up corruption in Hong Kong, and also provides the backdrop of a crime thriller, Z Storm, currently being produced by Hong Kong’s Pegasus Motion Pictures.
Wong’s Better Tomorrow is a 65-minute film that will be broadcast as part of Icac’s 2014 TV programming. Scripted by Cheung Fei-fan and starring Liu Kai-chi, Venus Wong and Eddie Law, it follows a university graduate who joins the Icac and finds herself stuck in a dull clerical position before she is transferred to a major corruption case.
Hkiff will also showcase a selection of Icac’s TV drama...
The festival is collaborating for the first time with Hong Kong’s Independent Commission Against Corruption (Icac), which celebrates its 40th anniversary this year. Founded in 1974, the organisation helped clean up corruption in Hong Kong, and also provides the backdrop of a crime thriller, Z Storm, currently being produced by Hong Kong’s Pegasus Motion Pictures.
Wong’s Better Tomorrow is a 65-minute film that will be broadcast as part of Icac’s 2014 TV programming. Scripted by Cheung Fei-fan and starring Liu Kai-chi, Venus Wong and Eddie Law, it follows a university graduate who joins the Icac and finds herself stuck in a dull clerical position before she is transferred to a major corruption case.
Hkiff will also showcase a selection of Icac’s TV drama...
- 2/24/2014
- by lizshackleton@gmail.com (Liz Shackleton)
- ScreenDaily
The Hong Kong International Film Festival (Hkiff) will screen the world premiere of Adam Wong’s Icac Investigators 2014 - Better Tomorrow, which has Dante Lam on board as consultant director, on March 26.
The festival is collaborating for the first time with Hong Kong’s Independent Commission Against Corruption (Icac), which celebrates its 40th anniversary this year. Founded in 1974, the organisation helped clean up corruption in Hong Kong, and also provides the backdrop of a crime thriller, Z Storm, currently being produced by Hong Kong’s Pegasus Motion Pictures.
Wong’s Better Tomorrow is a 65-minute film that will be broadcast as part of Icac’s 2014 TV programming. Scripted by Cheung Fei-fan and starring Liu Kai-chi, Venus Wong and Eddie Law, it follows a university graduate who joins the Icac and finds herself stuck in a dull clerical position before she is transferred to a major corruption case.
Hkiff will also showcase a selection of Icac’s TV drama...
The festival is collaborating for the first time with Hong Kong’s Independent Commission Against Corruption (Icac), which celebrates its 40th anniversary this year. Founded in 1974, the organisation helped clean up corruption in Hong Kong, and also provides the backdrop of a crime thriller, Z Storm, currently being produced by Hong Kong’s Pegasus Motion Pictures.
Wong’s Better Tomorrow is a 65-minute film that will be broadcast as part of Icac’s 2014 TV programming. Scripted by Cheung Fei-fan and starring Liu Kai-chi, Venus Wong and Eddie Law, it follows a university graduate who joins the Icac and finds herself stuck in a dull clerical position before she is transferred to a major corruption case.
Hkiff will also showcase a selection of Icac’s TV drama...
- 2/24/2014
- by lizshackleton@gmail.com (Liz Shackleton)
- ScreenDaily
Anchor Bay Films and Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment have signed a joint distribution agreement to release In The Blood day-and-date in theatres, on VOD and on iTunes on April 4.
Former Mma star Gina Carano leads an ensemble cast of Cam Gigandet, Luis Guzman, Amaury Nolasco, Ismael Cruz Cordoba, Treat Williams, Stephen Lang and Danny Trejo.
John Stockwell directed from a screenplay by Bennett Yellin and James Robert Johnston about a trained fighter on the trail of her new husband’s abductors.
Ray Mansfield and Shaun Redick of Movie Package Co produced with Cash Warren, while Lee Portnoi, David R Arnold, Nicola Horlick, Andrew Mann, Glenn M Stewart, Stefan Sonnenfeld, Luillo Ruiz, James Gibb and Belly Torres comprise the executive producers. The Way We Roll Productions and Mica Entertainment financed In The Blood.
Kino Lorber has struck a multi-year agreement with Palisades Tartan to serve as the latter’s exclusive home entertainment distributor in the Us and...
Former Mma star Gina Carano leads an ensemble cast of Cam Gigandet, Luis Guzman, Amaury Nolasco, Ismael Cruz Cordoba, Treat Williams, Stephen Lang and Danny Trejo.
John Stockwell directed from a screenplay by Bennett Yellin and James Robert Johnston about a trained fighter on the trail of her new husband’s abductors.
Ray Mansfield and Shaun Redick of Movie Package Co produced with Cash Warren, while Lee Portnoi, David R Arnold, Nicola Horlick, Andrew Mann, Glenn M Stewart, Stefan Sonnenfeld, Luillo Ruiz, James Gibb and Belly Torres comprise the executive producers. The Way We Roll Productions and Mica Entertainment financed In The Blood.
Kino Lorber has struck a multi-year agreement with Palisades Tartan to serve as the latter’s exclusive home entertainment distributor in the Us and...
- 2/19/2014
- by jeremykay67@gmail.com (Jeremy Kay)
- ScreenDaily
Asia was the big winner at the 64th Berlin Film Festival, taking home four Bears, including the Golden Bear for Best Film and Silver Bear for Best Actor (Liao Fan) for Diao Yinan’s Black Coal, Thin Ice (Bai Ri Yan Huo).Click here for full list of winners
Another of the three Chinese titles, Blind Massage, picked up the Silver Bear for Outstanding Achievement, which again went to a cinematographer, Zeng Jian. Last year had seen DoP Aziz Zhambakiyev receive the prize for his camerawork on Harmony Lessons.
At the ceremony on Saturday night, the Silver Bear for Best Actress was presented to Haru Kuroki for her performance in The Little House by veteran Japanese director Yoji Yamada.
There were a further six prizes or special mentions for films from Asia in the decisions of the Generation and independent juries (Fipresci and Netpac).
Black Coal, Thin Ice is the fourth Chinese film to win the Golden...
Another of the three Chinese titles, Blind Massage, picked up the Silver Bear for Outstanding Achievement, which again went to a cinematographer, Zeng Jian. Last year had seen DoP Aziz Zhambakiyev receive the prize for his camerawork on Harmony Lessons.
At the ceremony on Saturday night, the Silver Bear for Best Actress was presented to Haru Kuroki for her performance in The Little House by veteran Japanese director Yoji Yamada.
There were a further six prizes or special mentions for films from Asia in the decisions of the Generation and independent juries (Fipresci and Netpac).
Black Coal, Thin Ice is the fourth Chinese film to win the Golden...
- 2/16/2014
- by screen.berlin@googlemail.com (Martin Blaney)
- ScreenDaily
The 64th Berlin Film Festival drew to a close tonight with its prestigious annual awards ceremony, rewarding the cream of this year's crop with the International Jury's highest accolades. Headed up by American producer extraordinaire James Schamus, and featuring American actress Greta Gerwig and French director Michel Gondry, the Jury presented the coveted Golden Bear (the festival's top honour) to Chinese director Diao Yinan's noir thriller Black Coal, Thin Ice, which also won Liao Fan the award for Best Actor. The Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize went to Wes Anderson's The Grand Budapest Hotel, whilst Richard Linklater won Best Director for Boyhood and Haru Kuroki Best Actress for Yoji Yamada's The Little House.
- 2/15/2014
- by CineVue UK
- CineVue
This year's Berlinale winners have just been announced at the Closing Night Gala. The members of the 2014 International Jury, James Schamus (President), Barbara Broccoli, Trine Dyrholm, Mitra Farahani, Greta Gerwig, Michel Gondry und Christoph Waltz, awarded the following prizes:
Golden Bear for Best Film
Qu Vivian, Wan Juan for
Bai Ri Yan Huo
(Black Coal, Thin Ice)
by Diao Yinan
Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize
The Grand Budapest Hotel
by Wes Anderson
Silver Bear Alfred Bauer Prize
For a feature film that opens new perspectives
Aimer, boire et chanter
(Life of Riley)
by Alain Resnais
Silver Bear for Best Director
Richard Linklater for
Boyhood
Silver Bear for Best Actress
Haru Kuroki in
Chiisai Ouchi
(The Little House)
by Yoji Yamada
Silver Bear for Best Actor
Liao Fan in
Bai Ri Yan Huo
(Black Coal, Thin Ice)
by Diao Yinan
Silver Bear for Best Script
Dietrich Brüggemann , Anna Brüggemann for
Kreuzweg
(Stations of the Cross)
by Dietrich Brüggemann
Silver Bear for Outstanding Artistic Contribution
Zeng Jian for the camera in
Tui Na
(Blind Massage)
by Lou Ye...
Golden Bear for Best Film
Qu Vivian, Wan Juan for
Bai Ri Yan Huo
(Black Coal, Thin Ice)
by Diao Yinan
Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize
The Grand Budapest Hotel
by Wes Anderson
Silver Bear Alfred Bauer Prize
For a feature film that opens new perspectives
Aimer, boire et chanter
(Life of Riley)
by Alain Resnais
Silver Bear for Best Director
Richard Linklater for
Boyhood
Silver Bear for Best Actress
Haru Kuroki in
Chiisai Ouchi
(The Little House)
by Yoji Yamada
Silver Bear for Best Actor
Liao Fan in
Bai Ri Yan Huo
(Black Coal, Thin Ice)
by Diao Yinan
Silver Bear for Best Script
Dietrich Brüggemann , Anna Brüggemann for
Kreuzweg
(Stations of the Cross)
by Dietrich Brüggemann
Silver Bear for Outstanding Artistic Contribution
Zeng Jian for the camera in
Tui Na
(Blind Massage)
by Lou Ye...
- 2/15/2014
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
Though the annual Berlin Film Festival may have reached its 64th year, this year’s event is the very first HeyUGuys have had the distinct pleasure of covering. We can also proudly boast to having seen all 20 of this year’s films in Competition. So, with the award ceremony taking place tonight, to see which feature will take home the much coveted, prestigious Golden Bear, we’ve provided a run-down of all competing productions…
The Unmissable
The festival certainly got off to a good start, as the opening night film, The Grand Budapest Hotel, by American auteur Wes Anderson is one of the very best on offer. The quaint, whimsicality that alleviates the director’s work is matched on this occasion by a tender, emotional core to create one of his finest pieces yet. Polarising he may be, given his often contrived stylistic approach, but this seems to be a...
The Unmissable
The festival certainly got off to a good start, as the opening night film, The Grand Budapest Hotel, by American auteur Wes Anderson is one of the very best on offer. The quaint, whimsicality that alleviates the director’s work is matched on this occasion by a tender, emotional core to create one of his finest pieces yet. Polarising he may be, given his often contrived stylistic approach, but this seems to be a...
- 2/15/2014
- by Stefan Pape
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
The Hollywood Reporter's fifth issue from the Berlin Film Festival features an interview Berlin vet Yoji Yamada, a review of Shia Labeouf's antics at the fest, exclusive news on China's plan to increase the film quota and several reviews. Yoji Yamada Yamada has been in the Berlin competition six times. Yamada talked to The Hollywood Reporter about his early influences, his own wartime memories and why people should never forget the horrors of combat. Shia Labeouf Labeouf surprised a crowded room full of reporters by walking out of the Nymphomaniac, Part 1 press conference after saying a quote from soccer
read more...
read more...
- 2/10/2014
- by Rebecca Ford
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Greetings from the 64th annual Berlin Film Festival, where it’s a surprisingly balmy 10 degrees Celsius (50 degrees Fahrenheit). The weather here may not be business as usual, but the festival looks promising -- the competition includes films by Alain Resnais, Lou Ye, Yoji Yamada, and Claudia Llosa (whose odd and rather wonderful picture The Milk of Sorrow won the top prize here, the Golden Bear, in 2009). But first things first: The festival kicks off this evening with Wes Anderson’s Grand Budapest Hotel, also in competition. It was screened for the press this afternoon, but not at the Berlinale Palast, the spacious and accommodating Potsdamer Platz venue where most of the big-ticket action takes place. It was shown instead in a smaller theater n...
- 2/5/2014
- Village Voice
Tokyo -- Yoji Yamada's The Little House (Chisai Ouchi), has been selected to compete at next month's 64th Berlin International Film Festival, the ninth time the veteran director will have his work screened at the fest. Yamada, who is 82, told Japanese media after the announcement that he would try to make the trip to Berlin, but that long journeys are becoming more difficult for him. The Little House is based on Kyoko Nakajima's award-winning novel of the same name, published in 2010, which follows the life and loves of a family in Tokyo before and during World War
read more...
read more...
- 1/15/2014
- by Gavin J. Blair
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Joining the titles already announced—including films by Alain Resnais and Dominik Graf—the following films complete the lineup for the 2014 Berlin International Film Festival's Competition section.
Bai Ri Yan Huo (Black Coal, Thin Ice)
People’s Republic of China
By Yinan Diao (Night Train, Uniform)
With Fan Liao, Lun Mei Gwei, Xuebing Wang
World premiere
Boyhood
USA
By Richard Linklater (Before Midnight, Me & Orson Welles)
With Patricia Arquette, Ethan Hawke, Ellar Coltrane, Lorelei Linklater
International premiere
Chiisai Ouchi (The Little House)
Japan
By Yoji Yamada (Tokyo Family, About Her Brother)
With Takako Matsu, Haru Kuroki, Hidetaka Yoshioka, Satoshi Tsumabuki, Chieko Baisho
International premiere
Historia del miedo (History of Fear)
Argentina / Uruguay / Germany / France
By Benjamin Naishtat - feature debut
With Jonathan Da Rosa, Claudia Cantero, Mirella Pascual, Cesar Bordon, Tatiana Gimenez
World premiere
Jack
Germany
By Edward Berger
With Ivo Pietzcker, Georg Arms, Luise Heyer, Vincent Redetzki, Jacob Matschenz,...
Bai Ri Yan Huo (Black Coal, Thin Ice)
People’s Republic of China
By Yinan Diao (Night Train, Uniform)
With Fan Liao, Lun Mei Gwei, Xuebing Wang
World premiere
Boyhood
USA
By Richard Linklater (Before Midnight, Me & Orson Welles)
With Patricia Arquette, Ethan Hawke, Ellar Coltrane, Lorelei Linklater
International premiere
Chiisai Ouchi (The Little House)
Japan
By Yoji Yamada (Tokyo Family, About Her Brother)
With Takako Matsu, Haru Kuroki, Hidetaka Yoshioka, Satoshi Tsumabuki, Chieko Baisho
International premiere
Historia del miedo (History of Fear)
Argentina / Uruguay / Germany / France
By Benjamin Naishtat - feature debut
With Jonathan Da Rosa, Claudia Cantero, Mirella Pascual, Cesar Bordon, Tatiana Gimenez
World premiere
Jack
Germany
By Edward Berger
With Ivo Pietzcker, Georg Arms, Luise Heyer, Vincent Redetzki, Jacob Matschenz,...
- 1/15/2014
- by Notebook
- MUBI
The X-Men spinoff gives its star a love interest, but its heart is only in its fight scenes
The Wolverine has emerged as a breakout star of the X-Men, and in this action adventure feature vehicle he's big in Japan: the mutant travels to Tokyo. This is a big, loud, commercial picture which does not appear to have been written so much as audience-tested, global-market-researched, greenscreened and CGI-ed to within an inch of its life. Hugh Jackman returns as Logan, with the long claws and the hair teased up either side of his head to resemble horns or animal ears. Jackman is a powerful, virile presence, and this movie – and maybe the whole X-Men franchise – would be nothing without him. But the proceedings look massively contrived, and when lonely Logan has to have tenderly conjugal fantasy-conversations with the ethereally white-clad Jean Gray (Famke Janssen) the effect is strained, especially as...
The Wolverine has emerged as a breakout star of the X-Men, and in this action adventure feature vehicle he's big in Japan: the mutant travels to Tokyo. This is a big, loud, commercial picture which does not appear to have been written so much as audience-tested, global-market-researched, greenscreened and CGI-ed to within an inch of its life. Hugh Jackman returns as Logan, with the long claws and the hair teased up either side of his head to resemble horns or animal ears. Jackman is a powerful, virile presence, and this movie – and maybe the whole X-Men franchise – would be nothing without him. But the proceedings look massively contrived, and when lonely Logan has to have tenderly conjugal fantasy-conversations with the ethereally white-clad Jean Gray (Famke Janssen) the effect is strained, especially as...
- 7/26/2013
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
A Woman and War (Senso No Hitori No Onna), the debut film from director Junichi Inoue is a bold political statement. As I noted in my review, it criticises the crimes Japan committed overseas during the second world war by following the lives of three damaged people in a struggling Tokyo during the final stages of the war. Noriko Eguchi, who has worked on many independent feature films and is a regular on Japanese television screens, plays a former prostitute who is unable to experience pleasure while making love. Masatoshi Nagase has been acting for 30 years and has worked with Jim Jarmusch on Mystery Train and with director Yoji Yamada on My Sons and The Hidden Blade. Here he plays a disenchanted writer sure...
[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...
[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...
- 5/10/2013
- Screen Anarchy
The Berlinale has come and gone so quickly, so intensely. Everyone was catching the flu or a cold, and I was left with the sniffles. My last two days I was lucky to be able to catch some films. Before that I only saw Don Jon’s Addiction which I was charmed by. Scarlett Johanssen played the best role of her life, she is a great comedienne. And Joseph Gordon-Levitt was delightful. Upstream Color bit off more than it could chew. The reviews express my feelings about it better than I can.
A quick list of films seen by me and by other discerning women:
Concussion, starring Catherine Deneuve, a bored house wife story has been told before. This time, the two protagonists were attractive lesbian women and it was beautifully filmed, but nothing beats Belle de Jour also starring Catherine Deneuve.
The Weimar Touch is a series of films from the Weimar era in Germany which preceded the Nazi era and films which were influenced by filmmakers of the Weimar era. MoMA Chief Curator of Film, Rajendra Roy and Laurence Kardish, the former Senior Curator of Film at MoMA were members of the Curatorial Board (along with Rainer Rother, Artistic Director of the Deutsche Kinemathek, Connie Betz (Deutsche Kinemathek, Programme Coordinator Retrospective, and Hans-Michael Bock (Cinegraph, Hamburg). Maybe I could catch more of these fantastic sounding films in New York.
Hangmen Also Die! by Fritz Lang sounded so great. I got the ticket, but damn I missed the film because of a meeting. The notes written for Hangmen Also Die by Rainer Rother of the Deutsche Kinemathek, "Prague 1942. Following the assassination of Nazi Reich Protector Heydrich...a professor’s daughter hides the culprit in her parents’ apartment…sadistic, elegant and effeminate." Doesn’t that sound great? The gender bending in Vicktor Viktoria was charming and funny. Julie Andrews saw this actress and copied her style perfectly. They look like twins. Other films in the Restrospective had me going to the Film Museum to ask for the boxed set, but the prints are from so many places, the clearance on them would be nearly impossible I guess…no boxed set. Other films in The Weimar Touch were so enticing! I had seen A Midsummer Night’s Dream by Max Reinhardt himself and William Dieterle, (U.S. 1935) the last time when I was in high school and then didn’t know who Max Reinhardt was. Car of Dreams was a favorite of those who saw it. Casablanca in which Victor Lazlo and Ilse Lund play out their doomed love was directed by Hungarian born director Mihaly Kertesz (Michael Curtiz) and Humphrey Bogart is almost the only “real” American in the ensemble. I had never been aware of how The Weimar Touch formed that film. Others: The Chase, Confessions of a Nazi Spy, Le Corbeau – what a great film that is, a film that was saved only by Sartre and Cocteau’s speaking out in favor of director Henri-Georges Clouzot. This is a film Michael Haneke saw when he created The White Ribbon. A Dutch film, Somewhere in the Netherlands by Ludwig Berger in 1940, Gerhard Lamprecht’s Einmal Eine Grosse Dame Sein, British film, First a Girl, by Victor Saville, Fury by Fritz Lang, Gado Bravo from Portugal 1934, Gluckskinder from Germany in 1936, The Golem, The Mystery of Moonlight Sonata, Hitler’s Madman, How Green Was My Valley by John Ford in 1941 which was influenced by his friend F.W. Murnau, Max Ophuls’ Comedy About Gold, Letter from an Unknown Woman by Max Ophuls, M by Joseph Losey, Mollenard by Robert Siodmak, None Shall Live by Andre de Toth, Out of the Past by Jacques Tourneur, Peter, Pieges, The Queen of Spades, The Small Back Room, Some Like it Hot, To Be or Not to Be by Lubitsch, Touch of Evil by Orson Welles, Cabaret by Bob Fosse, Dial M for Murder, On the Waterfront, The Student of Prague, Tokyo Story were all touched by The Weimar Touch. What a collection!
Tokyo Kazoku (Tokyo Story) by Yoji Yamada was sweet and sad as the parents travel from their hometown of Hiroshima to visit their grown children in Tokyo – different from Ozu’s Tokyo Story, but “the story of family estrangement and the isolation inherent in modern society” as expressed in the story notes of Rainer Rother along with the reminders of the recent tsunami and its losses make this story deeply touching.
Interesting was Dark Blood by George Sluizer. It was not as spooky as The Vanishing, but to see River Phoenix, so beautiful in this role with such a sexy Judy Davis was a treat, if a bit dated. Elle s’en va with a Catherine Deneuve, aged after Umbrellas of Cherbourg and perhaps the same character takes a funny tour through rural France that I enjoyed. I missed Pourquoi Israel, part of the Homage to Claude Lanzmann but got to see Sobibor, 14 Octobre 1943 which was astounding. The bravery of the hero who was on screen the entire time, Yehuda Lerner, looked like a movie star. The entire story was so unexpected for me; how did it happen that I had never heard the story of the uprising at Sobibor before? I know Shoah and sat through it without a minute of disinterest – but that was in college. Claude Lanzmann justifiably said that this story was too unique and special to include in Shoah.
An odd Romanian film, the comedy A Farewell to Fools directed by Goodan Dreyer and starring child actor Boodan Iancu, Gerard Depardieu, Harvey Keitel and a cruelly beautiful Laura Morante, (and dubbed!) it is being sold in the market by Shoreline. It stands out in contrast to the Golden Bear Winner, the Romanian film Child’s Pose directed by Calin Peter Netzer and produced by Ada Solomon. This feisty portrayal of the nouveau riche seems like a fictional continuation of the doc her husband directed and which she produced in 2010: Kapitalism: Our Improved Formula.
Ada Solomon’s speech at the Awards Ceremony Closing Night deserves an award itself. Starting with the comment that she is more used to fighting than to winning, she pointedly thanked not only those who helped her but also those who did not help her whose resistance to her making this film made her stronger and more powerful. She pointed out the great need to have equal representation of women in the ranks of directors and producers as well, a theme which has been expressed repeatedly during this festival in many forms. (Read Melissa Silverstein’s blog on the joint meeting of women's films festivals initiated in Berlin by The International Women's Film Festival Dortmund|Cologone and the Athena Film Festival entitled "You Cannot Be Serious" in which women from many countries discussed the statistics and the status of women directors and other positions in the industry and continued the creation of a worldwide network pushing towards a more level playing field. Check out The International Women's Film Festival Network for more information).
Child's Pose, good in the vein of Separation, went head to head with the Chilean critic's choice, Gloria whose star Paulina Garcia, won the Best Actress Award. Could have gone both ways. The two older women were both great.
By the Way, Gloria was produced by Fabula, the Chilean company of the Lorrain Brothers who produced No as well as Crystal Fairy and director Sebastian Silva’s other films.
Jay Weissberg of Variety describes Child's Pose best as a "dissection of monstrous motherly love" and a "razor-sharp jibe at Romania's nouveau riche (the type is hardly confined to one country), a class adept at massaging truths and ensuring that the world steps aside when conflict arises."
I would like to suggest to the festival event planners that next year the Awards Ceremony’s onscreen presentation (which goes on simultaneously with the announcements of the prize winners) post the name of the winner along with the film title in its own language and in English as well as the country of origin. It’s difficult enough to follow the film with simultaneous translation in English via earphones; at least put the film titles in English for us foreigners.
A friend of mine remarks that the 2 most prestigious prizes at the festival went not to American or West European films, but to those from smaller countries with developing film cultures, Child’s Pose from Romania and Denis Tanovic’s Episode in the Life of an Iron Picker from Bosnia/ Herzogovina.
She goes on with her commentary of what she saw:
"Competition film Gold by Thomas Arslan provoked mixed response, but I liked it – Nina Hoss as the lead is excellent, plus there are long passages of the group on horseback trekking thru Alaska to the Klondike amidst spectacular landscapes. And the camerawork is wonderful. So that’s enough to keep me in my seat.
Night Train to Lisbon has been panned by virtually every trade publication critic as boring at the least. Nevertheless I enjoyed all the famous actors –Jeremy Irons, Lena Olin, Charlotte Rampling, Tom Courtenay, and yes Bruno Ganz. It is a story about the oppressive regime and a secret resistance group of in 1970s Portugal. Circles is a powerful and tough film by Srdan Folubovic about the revelations amidst survivors of a terrible event 12 years after the end of the war in Yugoslavia. Terrific performances support a complex and tough tale of how history permeates memory and behavior down thru the generations. Cold Bloom is the 4th feature of Atsushi Funahashi, who made last year’s powerful Nuclear Nation documentary about the effects if the tsunami. A drama about how the tsunami affected young workers and small businesses in the region is told thru the tragedy of a young couple. The title refers to a fantastic closing sequence under the cherry trees at night illuminated by street lamps, at once beautiful and bizarre. Gloria winner of the Golden Bear was clearly everyone’s favorite (although I could not get into the screening). Portrait of a middle aged woman in Chile (and winner of Best Actress award) it will hopefully make it across the ocean to these shores.
And finally, it is worth noting that the Forum Expanded section was extensive this year, showing diverse kinds of work including off site installations from every corner of the globe. Probably it is the single most important showcase for artists work in the film festival world. Kudos to the curators and the artist/filmmakers for keeping this exciting new work in front of the public year after year!"
Another friend who can’t decide whether to be credited here, a transplanted Los Angeleno who was born in Germany and lives in Berlin now had a very interesting insight into Two Women, wondering out loud if the two women and the two boys were transferring their homosexual feelings upon their cross parental lovers and likewise whether the two mothers were not actually acting out their lesbian affinities.
She also noted the sexual complexities of many of the films was of great interest to her. Examples she sites are the homosexual (But Not) pedophiliac feelings of a priest as depicted in In The Name Of; Gloria – not breaking news that a 58 woman is sexually alive – this film has a popular crowd pleasing charm which almost disqualifies it from the “festival” seriousness of a film like Child’s Pose, but both women are stellar.
My unnamed friend also said that, Camille Claudel failed to engage as did The Nun.
I would like to take this further, but it is very late for Berlin and now on to Guadalajara, a fascinating city and the seat of international, Iberoamerican co-productions which I think will become my obsession for the rest of the year.
Adios!
A quick list of films seen by me and by other discerning women:
Concussion, starring Catherine Deneuve, a bored house wife story has been told before. This time, the two protagonists were attractive lesbian women and it was beautifully filmed, but nothing beats Belle de Jour also starring Catherine Deneuve.
The Weimar Touch is a series of films from the Weimar era in Germany which preceded the Nazi era and films which were influenced by filmmakers of the Weimar era. MoMA Chief Curator of Film, Rajendra Roy and Laurence Kardish, the former Senior Curator of Film at MoMA were members of the Curatorial Board (along with Rainer Rother, Artistic Director of the Deutsche Kinemathek, Connie Betz (Deutsche Kinemathek, Programme Coordinator Retrospective, and Hans-Michael Bock (Cinegraph, Hamburg). Maybe I could catch more of these fantastic sounding films in New York.
Hangmen Also Die! by Fritz Lang sounded so great. I got the ticket, but damn I missed the film because of a meeting. The notes written for Hangmen Also Die by Rainer Rother of the Deutsche Kinemathek, "Prague 1942. Following the assassination of Nazi Reich Protector Heydrich...a professor’s daughter hides the culprit in her parents’ apartment…sadistic, elegant and effeminate." Doesn’t that sound great? The gender bending in Vicktor Viktoria was charming and funny. Julie Andrews saw this actress and copied her style perfectly. They look like twins. Other films in the Restrospective had me going to the Film Museum to ask for the boxed set, but the prints are from so many places, the clearance on them would be nearly impossible I guess…no boxed set. Other films in The Weimar Touch were so enticing! I had seen A Midsummer Night’s Dream by Max Reinhardt himself and William Dieterle, (U.S. 1935) the last time when I was in high school and then didn’t know who Max Reinhardt was. Car of Dreams was a favorite of those who saw it. Casablanca in which Victor Lazlo and Ilse Lund play out their doomed love was directed by Hungarian born director Mihaly Kertesz (Michael Curtiz) and Humphrey Bogart is almost the only “real” American in the ensemble. I had never been aware of how The Weimar Touch formed that film. Others: The Chase, Confessions of a Nazi Spy, Le Corbeau – what a great film that is, a film that was saved only by Sartre and Cocteau’s speaking out in favor of director Henri-Georges Clouzot. This is a film Michael Haneke saw when he created The White Ribbon. A Dutch film, Somewhere in the Netherlands by Ludwig Berger in 1940, Gerhard Lamprecht’s Einmal Eine Grosse Dame Sein, British film, First a Girl, by Victor Saville, Fury by Fritz Lang, Gado Bravo from Portugal 1934, Gluckskinder from Germany in 1936, The Golem, The Mystery of Moonlight Sonata, Hitler’s Madman, How Green Was My Valley by John Ford in 1941 which was influenced by his friend F.W. Murnau, Max Ophuls’ Comedy About Gold, Letter from an Unknown Woman by Max Ophuls, M by Joseph Losey, Mollenard by Robert Siodmak, None Shall Live by Andre de Toth, Out of the Past by Jacques Tourneur, Peter, Pieges, The Queen of Spades, The Small Back Room, Some Like it Hot, To Be or Not to Be by Lubitsch, Touch of Evil by Orson Welles, Cabaret by Bob Fosse, Dial M for Murder, On the Waterfront, The Student of Prague, Tokyo Story were all touched by The Weimar Touch. What a collection!
Tokyo Kazoku (Tokyo Story) by Yoji Yamada was sweet and sad as the parents travel from their hometown of Hiroshima to visit their grown children in Tokyo – different from Ozu’s Tokyo Story, but “the story of family estrangement and the isolation inherent in modern society” as expressed in the story notes of Rainer Rother along with the reminders of the recent tsunami and its losses make this story deeply touching.
Interesting was Dark Blood by George Sluizer. It was not as spooky as The Vanishing, but to see River Phoenix, so beautiful in this role with such a sexy Judy Davis was a treat, if a bit dated. Elle s’en va with a Catherine Deneuve, aged after Umbrellas of Cherbourg and perhaps the same character takes a funny tour through rural France that I enjoyed. I missed Pourquoi Israel, part of the Homage to Claude Lanzmann but got to see Sobibor, 14 Octobre 1943 which was astounding. The bravery of the hero who was on screen the entire time, Yehuda Lerner, looked like a movie star. The entire story was so unexpected for me; how did it happen that I had never heard the story of the uprising at Sobibor before? I know Shoah and sat through it without a minute of disinterest – but that was in college. Claude Lanzmann justifiably said that this story was too unique and special to include in Shoah.
An odd Romanian film, the comedy A Farewell to Fools directed by Goodan Dreyer and starring child actor Boodan Iancu, Gerard Depardieu, Harvey Keitel and a cruelly beautiful Laura Morante, (and dubbed!) it is being sold in the market by Shoreline. It stands out in contrast to the Golden Bear Winner, the Romanian film Child’s Pose directed by Calin Peter Netzer and produced by Ada Solomon. This feisty portrayal of the nouveau riche seems like a fictional continuation of the doc her husband directed and which she produced in 2010: Kapitalism: Our Improved Formula.
Ada Solomon’s speech at the Awards Ceremony Closing Night deserves an award itself. Starting with the comment that she is more used to fighting than to winning, she pointedly thanked not only those who helped her but also those who did not help her whose resistance to her making this film made her stronger and more powerful. She pointed out the great need to have equal representation of women in the ranks of directors and producers as well, a theme which has been expressed repeatedly during this festival in many forms. (Read Melissa Silverstein’s blog on the joint meeting of women's films festivals initiated in Berlin by The International Women's Film Festival Dortmund|Cologone and the Athena Film Festival entitled "You Cannot Be Serious" in which women from many countries discussed the statistics and the status of women directors and other positions in the industry and continued the creation of a worldwide network pushing towards a more level playing field. Check out The International Women's Film Festival Network for more information).
Child's Pose, good in the vein of Separation, went head to head with the Chilean critic's choice, Gloria whose star Paulina Garcia, won the Best Actress Award. Could have gone both ways. The two older women were both great.
By the Way, Gloria was produced by Fabula, the Chilean company of the Lorrain Brothers who produced No as well as Crystal Fairy and director Sebastian Silva’s other films.
Jay Weissberg of Variety describes Child's Pose best as a "dissection of monstrous motherly love" and a "razor-sharp jibe at Romania's nouveau riche (the type is hardly confined to one country), a class adept at massaging truths and ensuring that the world steps aside when conflict arises."
I would like to suggest to the festival event planners that next year the Awards Ceremony’s onscreen presentation (which goes on simultaneously with the announcements of the prize winners) post the name of the winner along with the film title in its own language and in English as well as the country of origin. It’s difficult enough to follow the film with simultaneous translation in English via earphones; at least put the film titles in English for us foreigners.
A friend of mine remarks that the 2 most prestigious prizes at the festival went not to American or West European films, but to those from smaller countries with developing film cultures, Child’s Pose from Romania and Denis Tanovic’s Episode in the Life of an Iron Picker from Bosnia/ Herzogovina.
She goes on with her commentary of what she saw:
"Competition film Gold by Thomas Arslan provoked mixed response, but I liked it – Nina Hoss as the lead is excellent, plus there are long passages of the group on horseback trekking thru Alaska to the Klondike amidst spectacular landscapes. And the camerawork is wonderful. So that’s enough to keep me in my seat.
Night Train to Lisbon has been panned by virtually every trade publication critic as boring at the least. Nevertheless I enjoyed all the famous actors –Jeremy Irons, Lena Olin, Charlotte Rampling, Tom Courtenay, and yes Bruno Ganz. It is a story about the oppressive regime and a secret resistance group of in 1970s Portugal. Circles is a powerful and tough film by Srdan Folubovic about the revelations amidst survivors of a terrible event 12 years after the end of the war in Yugoslavia. Terrific performances support a complex and tough tale of how history permeates memory and behavior down thru the generations. Cold Bloom is the 4th feature of Atsushi Funahashi, who made last year’s powerful Nuclear Nation documentary about the effects if the tsunami. A drama about how the tsunami affected young workers and small businesses in the region is told thru the tragedy of a young couple. The title refers to a fantastic closing sequence under the cherry trees at night illuminated by street lamps, at once beautiful and bizarre. Gloria winner of the Golden Bear was clearly everyone’s favorite (although I could not get into the screening). Portrait of a middle aged woman in Chile (and winner of Best Actress award) it will hopefully make it across the ocean to these shores.
And finally, it is worth noting that the Forum Expanded section was extensive this year, showing diverse kinds of work including off site installations from every corner of the globe. Probably it is the single most important showcase for artists work in the film festival world. Kudos to the curators and the artist/filmmakers for keeping this exciting new work in front of the public year after year!"
Another friend who can’t decide whether to be credited here, a transplanted Los Angeleno who was born in Germany and lives in Berlin now had a very interesting insight into Two Women, wondering out loud if the two women and the two boys were transferring their homosexual feelings upon their cross parental lovers and likewise whether the two mothers were not actually acting out their lesbian affinities.
She also noted the sexual complexities of many of the films was of great interest to her. Examples she sites are the homosexual (But Not) pedophiliac feelings of a priest as depicted in In The Name Of; Gloria – not breaking news that a 58 woman is sexually alive – this film has a popular crowd pleasing charm which almost disqualifies it from the “festival” seriousness of a film like Child’s Pose, but both women are stellar.
My unnamed friend also said that, Camille Claudel failed to engage as did The Nun.
I would like to take this further, but it is very late for Berlin and now on to Guadalajara, a fascinating city and the seat of international, Iberoamerican co-productions which I think will become my obsession for the rest of the year.
Adios!
- 3/10/2013
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
The Berlinale continues to add to the lineup for its February 7-17 fest. Tom Hooper's "Les Miserables" will play in the Berlinale Special showcase, as will Jane Campion's "Top of the Lake" miniseries, Giuseppe Tornatore's "The Best Offer," "Michael Winterbottom's "The Look of Love," Yoji Yamada's "Tokyo Family," Ken Loach's doc "The Spirit of '45" and Raoul Peck's "Fatal Assistance," a look at the consequences of charity hype in post-earthquare Haiti. In the Panorama section, two of the 31 films feature James Franco; as a former actor with schizophrenia in Carter's "Maladies" and in "Interior. Leather Bar.", inspired by William Friedkin's 1980 drama "Cruising." Also in the mix are Zaza Rusadze's "A Fold in My Blanket," Nanouk Leopold's "It's All So Quiet," Stacie Passon's "Concussion," Shane...
- 1/15/2013
- by Sophia Savage
- Thompson on Hollywood
Depending on how you look at it, The Hidden Blade, the 2004 samurai film by Director Yoji Yamada, is either very misleading or very metaphoric in its title. The slow-paced film doesn’t have many instances of samurai exchanging blows or preserving their honor, rather it takes a deeper look into the more everyday occurrences of a samurai’s life at the turn of an era when the firearms of the west were supplanting the traditional role of the samurai in battle. At its center is the peaceful and reserved Munezo Katagiri (Masatoshi Nagase), a samurai renowned for his swordsmanship despite never having used it in true battle. While a conflict does eventually arise and give cause for the use of “the hidden blade”, it’s comes along only in the last quarter of the film after 90-minutes of character building. If that sounds unusual for a samurai film, maybe that...
- 7/11/2012
- by Lex Walker
- JustPressPlay.net
Most Americans have probably never heard of Kiyoshi Atsumi, the late Japanese actor who starred in all 48 Tora-san movies before his death in 1996. But the films are now available on DVDs, with subtitles -- and director Yoji Yamada is still alive and kicking in Tokyo. Here are the opening scenes and theme song: The series, perhaps the longest movie series ever, started out with the working title of "It's Not Easy Being a Man," and if Yamada was not the Sholom Aleichem of Japan, he came pretty close to being an epic storyteller. Atsumi played a character named...
- 7/29/2011
- by Dan Bloom
- The Wrap
Directed by: Yoji Yamada
Written by: Yoji Yamada
Starring: Hiroyuki Sanada, Rie Miyazawa
Genre: Drama
Year: 2002
In mid-19th century Japan, petty samurai Seibei Iguchi slaves in a lowly profession as an accountant, peaceably performing his menial duties to provide for his two precious daughters and his senile mother. Condescendingly dubbed the “twilight samurai” by his coworkers for his pension for calling it a night after a hard day’s work, Seibei’s unkempt appearance and deplorable hygiene is his most external sacrifice in the name of family. Having lost his wife to consumption a few years before, Seibei has fashioned a domestic life more copacetic with his placid personality than with the false glory of the waning samurai way. That is until a former childhood friend (and unrequited love), Tomoe, incurs the wrath of her alcoholic lout of an ex-husband. Sensing that she needs protection, Seibei dispatches the abuser...
Written by: Yoji Yamada
Starring: Hiroyuki Sanada, Rie Miyazawa
Genre: Drama
Year: 2002
In mid-19th century Japan, petty samurai Seibei Iguchi slaves in a lowly profession as an accountant, peaceably performing his menial duties to provide for his two precious daughters and his senile mother. Condescendingly dubbed the “twilight samurai” by his coworkers for his pension for calling it a night after a hard day’s work, Seibei’s unkempt appearance and deplorable hygiene is his most external sacrifice in the name of family. Having lost his wife to consumption a few years before, Seibei has fashioned a domestic life more copacetic with his placid personality than with the false glory of the waning samurai way. That is until a former childhood friend (and unrequited love), Tomoe, incurs the wrath of her alcoholic lout of an ex-husband. Sensing that she needs protection, Seibei dispatches the abuser...
- 7/29/2011
- by Shane Ramirez
- SoundOnSight
Oh, how I’ve missed that goofy grin on a wanted poster. The wildly popular anime Trigun is getting the big screen treatment. FUNimation Entertainment and Eleven Arts are bringing the feature length film Trigun: Badlands Rumble to America this summer! Trigun: Badlands Rumble is a followup to the 1998 anime series that ran 26 episodes. Check out some production stills below as well as the official press release that tells you all about the movie.
[Click the Images to Blow Sh!t Up!]
Trigun: Badlands Rumble Blasts Into North American Box Offices in Summer 2011!
Eleven Arts and FUNimation Entertainment are bringing the feature length followup film to the popular “Trigun” anime series, Trigun: Badlands Rumble, to the big screen in theaters across North America in Summer 2011.
Eleven Arts is the company that has brought you such celebrated Japanese films as Memories Of Tomorrow starring Ken Watanabe and Yoji Yamada’s Love And Honor. FUNimation Entertainment...
[Click the Images to Blow Sh!t Up!]
Trigun: Badlands Rumble Blasts Into North American Box Offices in Summer 2011!
Eleven Arts and FUNimation Entertainment are bringing the feature length followup film to the popular “Trigun” anime series, Trigun: Badlands Rumble, to the big screen in theaters across North America in Summer 2011.
Eleven Arts is the company that has brought you such celebrated Japanese films as Memories Of Tomorrow starring Ken Watanabe and Yoji Yamada’s Love And Honor. FUNimation Entertainment...
- 5/5/2011
- by Brandon Johnston
- ScifiMafia
Director Yoji Yamada originally planned to begin principal photography of Tokyo Kazoku, an homage to Yasujiro Ozu’s Tokyo Story, on the first of this month. However, the devastating Tohoku earthquake and tsunami which occurred on March 11 caused Shochiku to halt the production and has forced Yamada to seriously consider altering the script to reflect post-3/11 Japan.
After planning the project for over a year and assembling a cast which includes Bunta Sugawara, Etsuko Ichihara, Masahiko Nishimura, Shigeru Muroi, Satoshi Tsumabuki, Yui Natsukawa, Shozo Hayashiya, and Yu Aoi, Yamada made the admittedly agonizing choice to push production back further after consulting with Shochiku.
The director suggested going ahead with the current script might be “feigning ignorance”, considering the possibility that the hearts and minds of the Japanese people may be changed by the events of 3/11. For that reason, the current plan is to monitor the state of the nation through the end of this year,...
After planning the project for over a year and assembling a cast which includes Bunta Sugawara, Etsuko Ichihara, Masahiko Nishimura, Shigeru Muroi, Satoshi Tsumabuki, Yui Natsukawa, Shozo Hayashiya, and Yu Aoi, Yamada made the admittedly agonizing choice to push production back further after consulting with Shochiku.
The director suggested going ahead with the current script might be “feigning ignorance”, considering the possibility that the hearts and minds of the Japanese people may be changed by the events of 3/11. For that reason, the current plan is to monitor the state of the nation through the end of this year,...
- 4/15/2011
- Nippon Cinema
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